Original subtitles

Now do you want to come to my room, player?

Come

on,

honey. Go.

Day of the Lord is at hand.

Come on, let's go.

Chris.

I've got supercells forming over Clark County, Nevada.

Wind speed's exploding.

What the hell is going on out there?

Easy, tiger.

I gotta use the little girl's room.

This thing's dropping funnels.

Issue an alert.

Get Andy on the phone. Tell him we need him.

So, what plays in Vegas stays in Vegas, right, baby?

Is everything alright in there, honey?

Everything's just fine.

I wanna hurry it up a little.

You see what I see, Herb? Holy cow, Marge.

Maybe somebody blew up Vegas.

Look, Marge, there are hundreds.

Check those Dopplers again.

Yeah, it's weird.

Signature looks more like Tornado Alley than the Far West.

Damage reports put it at F5.

It's almost up to Oklahoma City at 99.

What are the odds of tornadoes hitting Vegas?

About the same as getting dealt five royal flushes in a row.

Which is no excuse, people. We should have been on top of this.

Got to get these warnings out faster.

Heat waves, droughts, wildfires.

Tornadoes where they're not supposed to be. I'm getting out of this place in the

nick of time.

You said that, not me.

Are you sure you really want this job?

I go where I'm assigned.

You know what makes a really great forecaster, Chris? No, but I'm afraid

about to tell me. That's right.

Instinct. Well, I'll take reason over instinct.

Reason, my ass. What's reasonable about tornadoes in Las Vegas?

See, it's bouncing the heavy stuff with the lighter stuff.

What heavy stuff?

You know, tornadoes are ripping apart Las Vegas, and we're doing stories about

people dipping their feet in public fountains.

You know, since Walt Ashley has arrived, this has turned into Chicago, the

lighter side.

Why do you think he just doesn't hire a separate lifestyle reporter?

Because he's got me under contract.

And doesn't he realize that this is a crucial point in history? Not just for

people of Chicago or the country, but the planet. Okay, wait, hold on. Let me

just get that soapbox from the truck.

Shut up. This will shoot.

As we begin another hot and muggy morning.

I'm standing in front of the public fountain outside City Hall, which

have converted into a bathing pool to try and keep cool in this seemingly

endless heat wave.

Police have relaxed restrictions on public bathing, but are now facing a new

challenge, trying to keep kids from jimmying open the city's numerous fire

hydrants. In the meantime, the Cook County Quarters Office has confirmed

were 11 more deaths yesterday due to the heat. And according to weather

watchers, there doesn't seem to be any break.

in what will be our fourth straight week of temperatures over 100 degrees, which

is unprecedented.

Can't take this early in the morning.

I thought we could keep it at 79.

We revised the mandatory limits yesterday.

Lindsay, what do we say about using that blow dryer?

Mom, my hair is totally frizzing. It's a choice. You can have 10 minutes of blow

drying or air conditioning in your room. You can't have both. She'd blow every

circuit just to unfreeze that hair of hers.

Love you too, sis.

Just keep our cool.

Unbelievable. Five billion dollars in damage. What's next? Blizzards in L .A.

and then hurricanes on Lake Michigan?

Walker's off the DL list.

He's pitching against the Brewers. Honey, want some toast? Isn't anybody as

worried about the weather as I am? He struck out 13 in the last game. I almost

wouldn't mind a hurricane, as long as it broke through the heat wave.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, young lady. You're not going out of this house dressed like

that. Dad, it's like a million degrees outside.

Since when did the weather ever dictate teenage fashion? This is what everyone's

wearing. Well, you're not. Go put some clothes on.

Mom, would you put on a shirt, please?

Consider myself an enlightened father.

By the way, have you met Eric?

Who's Eric?

Her new boyfriend.

What happened to Alan?

Alex. He was last week.

Eric's a sociopath.

I'm not his.

Let me just rewind a couple of years to before she started dating. See you

later, pal.

Bye, Lindsay!

The

power

companies want to expand our use of coal to generate electricity without doing

anything to counterbalance the environmental consequences.

We are fast becoming a first -world nation with a third -world power grid.

You see, now that's what we should be reporting about. The dangers posed by

increasing consumption over an aging infrastructure.

You know your problem is, Amy?

You want to be Diane Sawyer. No,

Walt, I just want to report on the stories that matter. Well, no one tunes

watch those stories, and what have you accomplished, huh?

You know, 60 Minutes is one of the highest -rated programs in TV history.

our audience.

Excuse me, our audience is the people of Chicago. We're in a competitive

business. We don't get numbers and demos. We get fired.

Great idea. Let's do a week -long feature on the dumbing down of local TV

The heat, Amy.

Just stay focused on the heat.

Say good morning, but that has yet to be determined.

Give me a status report, Bob.

We hit another max load point when everyone woke up this morning and turned

their air conditioners. Is anybody listening to our conservation requests?

Sun comes up, people dial down their thermostat.

It's human nature. Except in here, what is it, 90?

It gets worse.

At 3 a .m., Lexer reduced transmissions. 20 ,000 of our customers woke up

without power this morning.

The utility in Indianapolis had an outage. Lexer diverted power away from

Midwest and gave it to them. What gives them the right to take power away from

our customers?

They have a contractual agreement with Lake Michigan Electric. Yeah, but that

doesn't override their obligation to the Midwest.

We're all beholden to the same master, Mitch. That's right. One big happy

family.

Morning.

Everybody, this is Becca Kearns. She's from PR at Lexer.

Craig Schiltz asked her to come over and advise.

Only advise.

I know you have your hands full. We just want to help any way we can. We have a

press conference at City Hall. Call me on my cell if you need me.

No!

No, no, no. I wasn't getting the movie, Twister.

I'm one of those guys, storm chasers. Been doing it 25 years. And there ain't

man on earth that'll get you closer, Mr. Uchiko.

Well, from here in Oklahoma down to the Texas Panhandle, up to Nebraska, Kansas,

South Dakota, we average about 40 tornadoes a year.

That's right, that's right. Four passengers at a time, two grand each for

week. But they'll see at least one Twister touchdown.

No, no, I never met Helen, huh?

Well, the sooner the better.

Michiyoshiko usually springs the best time, but this summer's been pretty

Could be a real record setter. Tornado was. You can bet yours truly is going to

be right in the middle of it.

You hear that?

Ah, that's the storm guard.

They're saying, come watch us play.

You won't be disappointed, Mr. Yoshiko.

We want to assure the people of Chicago that we have sufficient power to meet

the needs of all of our customers.

On the rolling brownout, there have been allegations that the poorer

neighborhoods are being targeted with greater frequency than the wealthier

neighborhoods. Comment?

Tactical voltage reductions are spread evenly throughout the system. If we were

going to target neighborhoods for brownouts, the wealthier ones would top

list because they consume more. I'd like the court to respond to our Secretary

of Energy quote that we're a first world nation with a third world power grid.

Well, Lexar's in the business of generating power, not fixing the

infrastructure. But we are trying to provide other services.

What about rumors that Lexar is shutting down plants to drive up what it can

charge for energy?

That's totally false. Plans do need to be taken offline periodically for safety

checks and servicing. Right now, there's one thing that will ease our power

crisis, and that's a break in the heat wave. We'll be back in a couple of days

to brief you again.

Thank you.

Well,

you heard it, folks. Our public utility operators won't be the ones to save us

from the power crisis.

They're looking to Mother Nature herself to bail them out.

This is Amy Harkin reporting from City Hall.

Heat wave's not their fault. They're just...

Employers deal with a bad situation best way they can.

Oh, come on. Jays are putting on a happy face when the fact is the system is

breaking down.

Hey, you're buying lunch, right?

You just think you do. I'm on television.

You looking to buy one of these units?

Because you should know there are a lot of problems with this building. No, I'm

just visiting.

Oh, the pregnant couple.

Yeah. How did you know that?

Well, they're the only other ones living in the building.

You know, the owner.

He's converting this place into a condo. So I heard. You know, they're really

happy. Well, I am furious.

Oh, really?

I can't believe they're sending you on a mission when your wife is about to have

a baby. We've got our people flying weather recon all over the country.

just aren't enough crews to go around.

It's only a week. I'll be fine.

Besides, every woman in my family delivered late on her first pregnancy.

Well, and I will be checking in five times a day.

I'll check in ten times a day.

You know, now that you're about to become a dad, don't you think it's time

stopped being a cowboy?

Amy, I know you love what you do. Jeff feels the same way about his job.

I'm just thinking of the baby.

Look, it isn't any more dangerous than being a commercial pilot.

Oh, flying around in planned hurricanes isn't dangerous. Not if you know what

you're doing. I'm talking about dangerous. I saw you grill that guy at

conference today.

Do we need to worry about these rolling brownouts when we're at the hospital?

No, they're backup generators.

Which they've had to use a lot during this heat wave. I mean, do they have

enough fuel in reserve?

We really have been thinking about this. The pilots do. We plan for

contingencies. Our backup plan is for me to go to my parents in Deer Grove.

They live right next door to No BGYN. You just promise me you wait to have

baby until I get there, okay?

I don't want to be holding your hand.

Cheers to that.

Who in the hell made this coffee?

Mr. Goodman.

Young lady, you better understand something.

We work a straight shift here. No lunch. These people survive on decent coffee.

Excuse me. First thing that a new assistant's got to learn is how to make

decent cup of coffee. Oh, well, I'm not the new assistant. I'm the new intern.

And I didn't make the coffee. I don't even drink coffee.

New intern, huh? Yes, sir.

I've read your books.

Yeah? Which ones?

All of them.

Some twice.

How much did you understand?

Well, I'm good with all but some parts of the chaos theory.

Well, it's chaotic.

I'm just having some troubles with the butterfly effect.

You mean you don't believe that a butterfly flapping his wings in the

affect the weather in San Francisco? Actually, I do. I just can't imagine our

being able to utilize variables on that level.

Don't you see how many variables we can utilize from this mess? Have it on my

desk at 9 a .m.

Is he normally like that?

Pretty much.

He hasn't had much sleep lately.

Mother Nature has been keeping him pretty busy these days.

He really is sort of a legend, though, isn't he? Well, let me put it this way.

When Andy started out, forecasters were still relying on their weather veins and

arthritis to tell them what was coming.

Look, don't take it too personally. He's just a little pissed because the guys

in Washington are putting him out to pasture.

When?

End of next week.

Who's taking his place?

I am.

Oh, that's exciting.

It's a job.

Speaking of which, don't you have some work to do?

Oh, nice work on that public bathing piece, by the way. Did you see the press

conference? I did.

The situation is a lot worse than they're telling us. Oh, and your source

that is? I'm developing one.

I'm going to send you a related focus group result.

See, the reality is viewers want people stories.

Not science, not conspiracy stories. You know what? When the power fails, it's

100 degrees and no one has air conditioning, they're going to care

real fast.

Then give me a source.

A real source.

And don't go spending too much time on it because I need you in other places.

Power companies are still recovering from the damage done by Enron. But a

like this provides an opportunity to prove to the public we can be counted on

keep serving their needs.

Nuclear energy now accounts for over 60 % of the power in Illinois, and Lexer is

at the forefront of developing new plants and modernizing equipment.

Public utilities like Midwest must be compelled to rely more and more on our

generating capabilities.

All the more reason to make sure we've addressed nuclear safety regulations.

And the operating system's vulnerabilities, especially given all

incidents. What incidents?

Is this the first time I'm hearing about it? No cause for alarm.

We're dealing with it.

But what's important is to reassure the public that Lexer can deliver and handle

adversity. Well, as I said before you joined us, Becca, it's all about public

perception.

And that is your job.

Lexer would fire me if they knew I was talking to you.

Lexer? Don't you work for Greater Midwest?

I work for Lexer. I've been temporarily assigned to Midwest to upgrade their

systems.

Coffee for black.

Computer systems.

Yeah. So how big a role do computers play in delivering power to customers?

Bigger and bigger all the time.

Good thing?

Bad? Wait a second. We're off the record, right?

Right?

It's all about cutting corners and saving costs.

And it's not just Lexer. All of these independent power companies are...

adding computer systems to patch over problems.

And what's wrong with that?

In order for the system to function effectively, it needs to be relatively

complex. That makes it difficult to find qualified people to operate it. And if

you try to make it easier to operate, it becomes vulnerable.

To hackers?

You said it, not me. Have they been having problems?

I shouldn't even be talking to you.

Hang on. We're just on background here, okay? We're going to call you an

anonymous source inside Midwest. Absolutely not.

We all know what happens to whistleblowers. They get movies made

insider. Yeah.

That guy lost his family, his career, his health.

Do you have a family?

No.

But I'm not ready to sacrifice a career I've been building for 15 years.

That's one hell of a supercell forming out there.

Wind speeds escalated 50 % since our last reading three minutes ago.

Are they still picking up, Roy?

Surface pressure's at 93 millibars. Wind's now at 85 knots.

Jeez, this thing is just exploding.

We need to change course or we're going to get caught up in it.

But we need to stay close enough to get accurate readings.

We've got to help anyone on the water down there.

unexpectedly severe storm in the Gulf of Mexico forced emergency evacuations on

eight oil rigs.

Damages are estimated at over $2 billion, and total casualties are still

unknown. How the hell did this happen?

Andy, the wind patterns were there, but not these conditions.

That vertical shear came out of nowhere.

Tornadoes destroy Las Vegas. We got hurricane -force winds in the Gulf. We

them both?

What can I say? We were caught off guard.

People are dead because we failed. Now, from now on, if a dog...

farts in Duluth. I expect somebody in this office to know about it.

All right, everybody, get back to work.

brings the total to three oil and natural gas rigs destroyed by hurricane

in the Gulf of Mexico, with 19 confirmed fatalities and another nine workers

missing. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a statement attempting

to calm fears that the loss of these resources would...

Hey. Hi. You didn't have to wait up again.

If I didn't, why don't we spend time together?

I'm glad to see you're conserving energy.

I was trying to be romantic.

So how is it going?

Oh, I don't know.

Everybody's working really hard.

When this is over, they should give you a medal.

It's got to end sometime, right?

Fall will be here soon.

Cool, crisp air.

And then winter.

That's exactly what I'm worried about. You know, is it going to be the same

thing in reverse?

Months and months of sub -zero temperatures.

I know you've been under a ton of stress lately, but is anything else going on?

It's not like you to be so bleak. I don't know.

I think I'm just tired.

Just remember that your family is always here for you. Your son, your daughter,

your wife.

Thanks.

How did your briefing with the president go?

Oh, he yelled at me.

Then he lectured me.

And then he cussed me out.

The press went to town on that third world power grid quote.

Shirley, what the hell were you thinking?

Well, I hate to add to your burdens, but have you been keeping up with what's

going on in the Gulf?

Yes. The timing could not be any worse. The weather administration is saying the

storm isn't letting up, which means they'll be closing more pipelines and

refineries. Causing shortages as early as next week. You've been telling

everyone it's a house of cards.

Nobody ever wants to hear the sky is falling.

No, sir, it's not just about energy or the environment.

It's about civilization.

Whether or not we'll have one in 20 years. But so far it's all been

Do you think this is our new reality?

It's exactly what I've been warning them about.

A prolonged and widespread heat wave coupled with drought and some natural

calamity. And this really is our new reality.

Where are the warning signs?

Why couldn't we see these things coming?

You've been having problems with the new satellite.

Yeah, sure. Let's blame it on the technology. It's true. We're only as

our instruments. Wrong.

Instruments are tools. They're just sharpened sticks. We're supposed to

the brains.

Well, the good news is it'll blow itself out when it runs out of water. I don't

know. The storm's a lot steeper than your typical Gulf storm.

Global warming assures they'll change the rules.

Global warming is an unproven theory, Andy. Call it whatever you want.

out there is changing our climate.

We better start dealing with it.

A lot more people are going to die.

Don't go out there. The hell's doing the baseball?

Lindsay, you are not going to believe who I just saw.

Leah is back with Brandon Wright.

His name should be Brandon Wrong.

Any chick that dates a guy for his car?

The sleazebag.

Eric, you're going to get us kicked out of here.

Security guards are all wimps, babe.

Hey, Lindsay, come sit on my lap.

Piss off, Wendell.

Eric, don't.

No one talks to you that way.

Get out of my grill, man.

isn't got no cushion.

We're at full capacity 24 -7. We're already too dependent on Lexer and all

our other suppliers are strapped. Well, what choice do we have? He who makes the

power makes the rules.

Excuse me.

Yeah.

Hi. Hey.

I miss you.

I... I know.

You're married.

Yes, I know that too.

I don't do this. I don't get involved with married men. Look, Jane and I have

been together a long time. This is the first time this has ever happened.

When can I see you again?

I should take this.

Hello? I just got a call from Lindsay. They're holding you down at the Old Town

Police Precinct. What?

She sounded upset.

I asked if she was hurt. She said no.

I'm on my way. I'll call you when I get her.

Okay, thanks.

I gotta go. A little emergency.

Is everything okay? Yeah. I'll tell you about it when I get back.

So, uh...

What was the fight about?

I don't want to talk about it. Lindsay, it's not going to cut it. Now, tell me

what happened.

This guy said something to me.

Eric got all mad.

Eric. You didn't even know I had a boyfriend, did you? Yes.

Do you know anything about my life? Yes. It's just hard to keep up with your

boyfriends. I guess I'm going to have to start now that they're carting you off

to jail. It wasn't my fault. Lindsay, I'm not your enemy.

Now, I want to help you, but I can't help you unless you tell me what's going

on.

Hiroshi. Hiroshi.

Welcome to Tornado Alley.

I'm Thomas Dixon, better known to my fellow storm chasers as Tornado Tommy.

What do you think we should get right to it, huh?

Seeing a tornado is like having great sex.

You never get enough, and it never lasts long enough.

Now, now, don't get me wrong.

I'm a scientist first and a hunter second.

I used to work for the National Weather Administration, but I couldn't stand

sitting behind a desk and not being here.

Ladies and gentlemen, there is no place on Earth that has seen more tornadoes

than where you're sitting right now.

Oh, yes, certain atmospheric conditions need to be present, but when they are,

these suckers can drop from the sky without the slightest warning.

Gotcha!

I just love that part.

The wind you just felt is 1 -1000, the strength of an average -sized tornado.

Which means they're very dangerous.

So you're going to have to follow my rules.

Now, let's talk about the Fujita scale.

Named after meteorologist Theodore... Fujita. You guessed it, Fujita.

The Fujita scale allows us to measure the severity of a tornado relative to

damage that it causes. For instance, an F1 snaps trees and breaks windows.

F2 uproots trees, blows away small structures. The F3 flips over cars,

damage to wood frame structures.

F4 flattens those structures. And the F5 is the strongest ever recorded at over

300 miles per hour velocity.

cars and throws them into the next county now i

need for everyone to sign those releases the midwest grid runs on an extremely

complex operating system called helios nine okay that makes the system very

secure not very user -friendly so you're in there implementing ways to dumb it

down yeah i'm at the top of my field okay i make a lot of money Lexer doesn't

want to have to put a bunch of guys like me on salary. They'd rather hire some

kid out of college, put him on a six -week course, and turn him into an

And the risks are?

Anyone with a PC can contend a Trojan horse worm virus, you name it. To do

Tell us the transmission lines that it's overloaded, okay? That throws the

circuit breakers, and then, oops, your lights go out.

And the people at Lexercorp know this?

Of course they know it. How much of the grid is vulnerable?

The whole thing. Imagine the consequences of a terrorist shutting

this country for one week.

Every piece of refrigerated food goes bad. We can't drink the water.

Gas pumps don't work.

Hospitals shut down. Stock market crashes.

National security is at risk. Yeah.

I need you to tell me about the problems that you're having right now.

I can't.

Not yet.

You want us to tell our viewers that electricity might suddenly just all go

based on the speculations of what? Some anonymous source?

Are you nuts?

This is about Lexercorp trying to cut corners by using unsecured computer

technology. You want to take on one of the richest companies in the region

without getting verifiable facts or on the record sources. You think I'm making

this up?

No, I think you're trying to be some kind of a hero.

What we really need here, reporters, is to keep people calm, grounded, and

informed. So the world could be coming apart at the seams, but it's our job to

keep people calm and grounded? Do you want to scare the city out of its mind?

Do you?

then you go ahead, you tell them they cannot depend on their electricity.

But if it's the truth... Then you get me verifiable facts and on -the -record

sources.

If all strikes the best of conditions, though, our game will come to an

unexpected stop here while they try to figure out what happened. Well, let's

hope they fix this power situation quickly, because I know the Cubs fans,

they ought to be patient for long.

You know, I can hear the old -timer saying, told you so, they should never

put lights in Wrigley Field. Mitch, it's Wrigley.

Mitch Benson.

Yeah, we just heard that, according to our computers, they should have power.

Yeah, no, we didn't do anything here.

Well, of course I'll look into it.

I'll come back on.

You tell me.

I looked at the variable stuff that you worked up for us last night. It was all

right. Better than your coffee.

I didn't make the coffee. Could you take a look at these for me?

Yeah, I guess so.

Is the last 24 out?

Those are from the last 12.

It's the kind of pattern you'd see in late fall. It's way too early for this

Arctic low -pressure system to slip down this low.

I checked it and rechecked it. Do me a favor. Contact our weather people in

Alaska. We've got some good spotters up there. See if we can get some eyeball

reports. Sure.

Something else.

Listen, I'm sorry. What's your name? Sabrina Rogers.

Keep an eye on this thing for me. Let me know if it's heading our way.

The Doppler's showing extreme instability over West Texas.

We got him on the phone now.

Yeah. Andy, you see what's going on out here in Amarillo?

These winds are building up at 90 miles per hour.

This is an adorable bear. He already has six of them. Well, his aunt has bought

him number seven, a clean one for each day of the week, right? I guess.

You know, you being pregnant has really made me think about why I haven't had a

child yet.

You've just made other choices up to this point in your life.

Yeah, but if I don't make this choice to have a child, will I regret it?

You know what? I've admired what you've done.

You followed your dream. You tell the stories that people need to hear.

No, absolutely not, because...

You've got to make sure that the program's reading the voltage levels

before they get stepped on. Gentlemen, would you excuse us for a moment?

Is this about Wrigley Field?

I'm not concerned with that.

Someone left 35 ,000 people sitting in the dark. How can you not get... Look,

your job is to make the new system work. Let us handle security.

How's it going at Midwest?

We're above 80%. We have six more hospital generators to bring online.

And when will it reach 100?

Next week? Well, probably the week after.

That system is an essential piece of the puzzle.

Once it's in place, Midwest will be even more dependent on us. Not to mention

we'll be able to shed another hundred non -essential workers.

Keep on it.

Could the power outage of last night's game have been caused by a hacker?

No, the event's under investigation.

Could it be terrorists?

I'm not going to speculate.

Is it at least a possibility that it could have been caused by a hacker? It's

not our policy to comment on investigations that are ongoing.

What are you afraid of? Ma 'am, I'm not afraid of anything. I'm trying to answer

your question, and you're trying to sensationalize the story for television

ratings. So when I say we can't comment, it means we can't comment. If there is

at least a suspicion that a hacker is sabotaging our power system, don't you

think the public has a right to know? It would be absolutely... A potential

hacker is one of several theories under discussion, but it would be

irresponsible at this point to let the public think that was the most credible

explanation for... And have your employer risk losing its customers.

trying to answer your question. What is it with you? You jump all over her. Can

we hear it from another reporter, please?

Let Northern Illinois know that they're getting severe thunderstorms the next 24

hours. You don't think it's premature?

I wish we'd been premature in Las Vegas.

The Gulf of West Texas.

Get it out on the line now.

I got a call from Mitch Benson.

Hey, Andy, give me some good news. Tell me we got rain on the way.

Rain and lightning, lots of it.

It could get very nasty along Lower Lake Michigan.

I wish we could find a way to feed that energy into our grid.

It's called research and development, Mitch. Yeah, well, we're lucky when we

a new coffee pot down here.

Thanks, Andy. I'll call my operator.

Looks like Chicago's going to get blasted.

This is really accelerating.

We'll have to revise our estimates.

They need the rain.

Yeah, but not all at once.

I shouldn't have left Laura.

The National Weather Administration is forecasting severe thunderstorms in the

Chicago area.

Mom? Is something wrong?

No.

No, I mean... I mean, I should call your father and tell him about the storm.

Hi.

Would you tell Mitch Benson that his wife's on the line?

Hi. Did you hear the warning?

Yes.

Are you coming home?

I've got to stay with the ship till this is over. Are Garth and Lindsay home?

Lindsay's on her way home now.

From where? When's she going to get there? With her, it could be ten

could be an hour. I don't know.

Will you check in later?

Of course I will.

Okay. Bye.

Here you go.

I was just thinking about Jeff.

No, I'd rather not think about Jeff. That makes me too nervous.

It's what he loves.

I know, but don't your priorities change when you're about to become a parent?

Can you picture your brother at a desk job?

Yeah.

Okay, Mom, I think it's about time we stepped away from the window.

I hope that's not your overnight bag for the hospital.

No, I just packed that. You have to go to my parents.

Well, you'll let me drive you out there, right?

Honestly, it's just a last resort.

I know my mother will make me crazy.

Wow, I hope that doesn't scare them.

I sure did.

Doesn't look good.

I think we're still in one piece.

We can't survive another hit like that.

I'm diverting us into O 'Hare.

That was an hour and a half ago.

There was traffic.

We talked about you not seeing as much of Eric. He was nice enough to give me a

ride home.

God, what do you want?

You better unplug your computer.

Mom, unplug the phone.

Are you all right?

Yeah, I'm fine.

The TV's on.

Oceanic 762, we're avoiding weather and power. problem. Chicago air is closed at

this time. We've been hit by lightning. We're trying to assess our damage.

Copy that.

Advise us of your condition.

I don't like this.

What the hell just

happened? Our plant took a direct hit. How bad?

Knocked out generators one through six.

And damage seven, nine, and ten. How long until we can get them operational?

Christmas, if we're lucky.

What do you think?

Can't get around it. I have to go straight through it.

I'm gonna get fried.

Tower, this is Oceanic 762 Heavy requesting straight in. Two -seven left.

Flaps 15, set speed 210 knots.

Flaps 15, speed 210.

Prepare for emergency landing.

Flight attendants on the lower deck will be directing you to the two exits at

the front of the plane. All eyeglasses, neckties, bulk teeth must be removed.

From here we can see how the city is dark. How bad is it?

Our plant just went out of commission. They're telling me something like four

months to get it repaired.

Good news for Lexer, I guess.

Yeah, bad news for us. Our other suppliers are all overloaded and now

our only source.

Which is how Craig Schultz likes it.

Flaps 20.

Flaps 20.

Flaps not responding until it's 15.

Let's throttle back.

We're at stall speed now. O 'Hare Tower, this is Oceanic 762 and I'm declaring

an emergency. We're fast and heavy and we need to land now.

Gear down.

Gear's going down.

I've got a warning flag on the nose gear.

Is that for real, or did the lightning knock out our sensors?

Doesn't matter. We're going in anyway.

We're too damn hot.

Not if the gear holds.

400.

300.

We've got crews working around the clock, but the best case scenario is

maybe four months to get our primary plant back online.

What horrible timing.

For you or for us?

Both. We have a responsibility to our customers regardless of these unforeseen

acts of God. When Lake Michigan Electric had a problem, you made sure they kept

running. Now it's Midwest's turn. And there is no relationship we value more

highly than our relationship with Midwest.

I appreciate that, but you also have a contractual obligation.

Mr., are you worried that we would take advantage of your misfortune? Your

obligation is to make a profit. Ours is to make sure that our customers' needs

are met. And they will be.

You'll get your power.

At what price?

Well, I guess that's it for now. Thank you.

He's a hothead. I can see him complaining to the state utilities

Our Belmont and Jarvis reactors are operating at what capacity?

We're already exceeding federal limits. Don't push them further.

We're here to sell power. When France had that horrible heat wave, their

government allowed reactors to operate past temperature safety limits.

While risking the thermal death of several major rivers and lakes. I can't

the feds relaxing their guidelines anytime soon. We're in a crisis.

So to keep people's lights on, we'll just have to do what we have to do.

After 72 days of drought and a six -week heat wave, we have rain showers in

Chicago, which, along other benefits, have helped firefighters deal with the

numerous fires set off by last night's intense lightning storm.

That's it. Keep it upbeat.

Finally got some positive news to report, huh?

that emergency services are stretched to the breaking point, both in terms of

manpower and resources.

She just had to do that to me, didn't she?

Hey.

Your dinner's in the fridge.

Thanks.

How was your day?

Other than the rain, that was nice for a change. It was basically miserable.

Kids okay?

Lindsay and I fought like cats and dogs.

Garth was gone most of the day at camp.

My day was fun. We lost our only generating plant, and that makes us

completely dependent on Lexer.

Is that the company that Becca Kearns works for?

Yeah. Yeah, she's their senior VP for public relations.

Attractive woman.

Professional, smart.

Is she married?

I don't know.

I don't think so.

She's more than attractive, really.

She's beautiful, don't you think?

What do you mean?

I think you know what I mean.

You were never very good at lying.

Respect me and tell me the truth.

How long?

Not long. Not even a month.

And this is the first time.

Are you planning to leave?

No.

I don't know. I haven't thought anything through.

Well, do that much for me, would you?

Think things through and let me be the first to know.

I won't tell the kids, but I want you to sleep in the guest room.

Yeah, I'm getting some very promising signs.

Looks like a big unstable system. Head straight for it.

Yes, sirree, the storm gods are serving up a feast today.

Yeah, this is Goodman. Are you tracking this down there?

Tommy, where are you?

Somewhere outside Bartlesville, Oklahoma.

Got a real feeling about this one, Andy. Yeah, me too.

Have you been drinking?

Hell no, I'm giving four paying customers the thrill ride of their

I just thought I'd tell you, old buddy.

Say, look, Andy, I am staring straight down the barrel of this one here.

You want me to spot it for you? Yeah.

Yeah, you be my eyes. But, Tom... Yeah, Andy?

I got a bad feeling about this one.

Don't get yourself killed.

Well, well, that's kind of... Storm God's now in it.

Amy Harkin. I started a report last night.

What happened to the other story?

I hit a brick wall.

My boss won't take on Lexicorp without an on -the -record source.

So I lose my job? You become the hero reporter for breaking the biggest power

scandal since Enron?

I don't want you to lose your job. Forget it.

Who's taking on Lexicorp?

I am.

You surprised?

I just got to get my source out of the closet.

Your source?

Sounds a little cloak and dagger.

This could be the big one.

Yeah, well, let's hope it's not the big one that gets you fired.

I couldn't lie. I just couldn't.

How'd you find out?

You don't think... It wasn't me.

Well, there are only two people who know about this.

How could you think... I guess you don't know me that well.

I mean, I'm not accusing you. How would I tell your wife? To break up your

marriage? I don't want that.

So what are we doing?

I don't know. I hadn't planned on...

Well, now it's really complicated.

What do you want to do?

You know, I want to rewind to that night three weeks ago.

Hail, hail in summer's no big deal around here, but snow?

We haven't seen snow in August since I don't know when. Thanks so much for your

help. I really appreciate it.

Southern Kansas first.

Wichita. Got to advise them to warn the outlying communities for heavy rainfall

tonight. What are you doing?

I just wanted to talk to Andy. You do realize he's a little busy right now?

Seriously, if you distract him for five minutes and he misses getting an alert

out on time, you realize what the ramifications of that are? I know, but

me... He was being nice to you because he admires your youthful enthusiasm.

But right now he's got more important things to do. Okay?

Make sure they're in touch with state police and local spotters. We want

everyone on the lookout.

I have some new information.

Andy, I'm sorry. I told her not to bother you.

Oh, no, that's all right.

See what she's got, all right?

Sure. Can you come with me?

I just spoke to a bartender near Calgary. His thermometer was at

That's 30 degrees below normal. You were just an intern.

Try to remember that. But Andy looked at my research. He was just humoring you.

Now sit down at your desk, do whatever it is you do, and stop trying to

grandstand.

Now! And if I see you step out of line again, I will personally see to it that

your internship here is over.

Take a look at this storm top. It just keeps rising.

50 ,000 feet, 55 ,000 feet. How high can it go?

So, does she have anything we can use?

There was nothing there.

She made a lot of technical errors. Her presumptions were all wrong.

Really?

Hmm.

Power's back on for most of the city. Looks like Lex is delivering.

Could be, considering what they're charging us. Mitch, you got a second?

know you've got a lot on your plate now, but it's my responsibility to tell you

my concerns.

How about the system that Lexer's having me reprogram?

Talk to me. I'm not a fan. You know the virus issues we've been having. Mitch,

call from the operator at Fort Sheridan. They're saying it's urgent.

We'll come back to the same.

Thanks.

Yeah.

What?

When?

All right, I'll call you back.

Apparently the Jarvis reactor has been dumping excess water into the river.

They've got to be operating beyond restrictions.

Exactly.

Do you know what's going on with the Fort Jarvis reactor?

Good day to you, too.

Is this how you guys are solving our power problem?

As an employee of the company, you know I can't comment on something like that.

Come on, Becca. If they're pushing this reactor beyond federal guidelines, we're

all going to end up with the Justice Department breathing down our neck.

Mitch, I will not have this conversation with you. That's right. I need to be

having this conversation with Craig Schultz. Thanks very much.

What's the matter?

I've been bummed out all day.

It's nothing.

I'm fine.

I know what you need.

A big guzzle. We'll all get one.

We don't have enough money.

That's not a problem.

I'll be right back.

Dude. Dude, we don't have any money.

Lindsay, run! Come on, let's go!

I need your bag!

This is going to taste great.

What'd you do?

You said we had no money.

So, we got some.

I can't believe you guys did that.

Hey, it's no big deal.

Look, the cops are spread all over the city.

Cake.

Now that is one big, beautiful supercell there, folks.

He's really brewing.

See that?

Starting to rope.

Let's see you shake, rattle, and roll.

You know, we really don't know that much about tornadoes.

That's because so few people have actually been this close and lived to

about it.

Oh, come on.

Oh, don't look at him.

That's the reason we approach these babies from the southeast, because they

to move in a northwesterly direction.

Except this one. Let's get back in the truck.

I'll take us in closer for a better wind reading

Amy was right. Maybe there are better jobs for a new dad.

I'm going as fast as I can!

I'm Amy Harkin of WNUW Chicago, walking alongside what was a favorite

destination for many Chicagoans, looking for a cooling break from the record

-breaking temperatures we've been experiencing in recent weeks.

But today is a very different story.

The riverbank here at the Jarvis Nuclear Power Generating Plant is a devastating

scene. Superheated runoff from the plant has killed what appears to be many

thousands of fish.

With me is Randy Krieger, a Jarvis Beach resident.

Mr. Krieger, when did you become aware of the problem?

The first thing I noticed was the smell, which about knocked me off my feet.

Then I looked out at the water, and it was bubbling like a pot of boiling

I've always said this reactor here is like a Chernobyl waiting to happen.

Thanks very much for your time.

That was great.

Thanks.

You know what's going to make you cut that Chernobyl?

Okay, superheated water instead of radioactivity. You know what? Still a

environmental screw -up. Look, you don't need to convince me. No, come on.

Feebles' attentions are focused on three things. The heat, the heat, and the

heat. You think it's just going to go away?

I just don't think we could overreact.

Okay, Becca, ball it into your court.

And our position is? With an accident, unforeseeable, deeply regrettable, and a

direct consequence of the overwhelming demand for power.

You know they're going to see right through that.

And it's your job to create so much opacity that they don't.

Opacity?

Smoke.

Here we go.

Shirley, how are you?

What the hell is going on there?

We have everything under control here. You damn well better. You've already

violated about 50 federal laws.

We are in a crisis environment.

Remember when France had that horrendous heat wave? Are you really trying to use

15 ,000 dead French people to justify your crime?

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Crime is a pretty strong word.

Don't do this with me, Schiltz. I'll send my regulators down there right now

seize your files.

I don't care who your friends are in Washington.

Your company has crossed a threshold.

I'm going to make sure you pay.

I just love to watch you beat up on those power company boys.

Thank you.

This is awkward.

Yeah, it is.

Look, I'm sorry, but I need advice.

The way I see it, your company is asking you to stand up and lie in front of the

whole world. Are you comfortable doing that? Mitch.

Look, I'm sorry. It's just so damn complicated. You and I are involved. You

for our main supplier. Don't give me that conflict of interest crap. I need

help.

I have two choices.

Do my job or resign.

And if I resign, it's going to draw attention and they'll come after me

Either way, it makes for a hard look in the mirror, doesn't it? This isn't just

about me, you know.

Schultz is holding all the cards. If he's pushed, he'll shut down the plants

for, quote, repairs and hold just about every city in the Midwest hostage.

You shouldn't let him get away with that.

Lexer wants the public to know that an intensive effort is underway to repair

the damage and make sure nothing like this ever happens again. Keep in mind,

one was physically hurt during the event, which was, and let me stress

unforeseeable and deeply regrettable accident for which Lexer and its

sincerely apologize.

What did this used to be?

Hi, honey.

Are you worried about the nuclear thing?

Because they told us at camp today that it's not like Three Mile Island.

It's killing the fish, but not the people.

Hi.

You're home before dark?

Shocking. I've been here for three hours.

Do you need anything, Mom?

I can run to the store and make dinner.

No, honey, thanks.

I'm fine.

Still here?

Oh, I had to input weather logs going back 30 years to run these computer

models. Put up a satellite picture over the Rockies.

Put them side by side.

That polar jet stream is the strongest I've ever seen.

How'd you make out with our spotters up in Alaska? You told me it was snowing on

the North McKenzie River.

Most ever for August.

The worst thing you can be in my job is an alarmist.

The two of us.

Alarm me.

You got this massive Arctic low pushing down over us, fueled by the polar jet

stream. You got this Gulf storm pushing up from the south.

That's fueled by the tropical desert.

You don't think they'd actually converge around Chicago?

Roger.

Copy that.

We're being retasked.

They want us to head north to the Canadian border and the upper Lake

region. That's nuts. All the action's a thousand miles to the south.

Apparently not.

Something big must be brewing for them to divert us.

Thanks, Rog.

I owe you big.

Chase.

Hey, Chase. Come on. Where are we going?

Remember that source I told you about? You talked him out of the closet?

He's telling me that our power system, the grid, the transmission, it's all

vulnerable. Someone's been hacking into it. And if he's right, the whole thing

will come crashing down.

So this is your big story.

And Walt's not going to let me put it on the air unless we get that source on

tape. And he doesn't want to show his face because then he becomes the story.

Isn't this a dilemma for you?

It's a dilemma, not mine.

I mean, this is where you need to stop and think for a minute.

I mean, what's it going to do to his life?

Chase, what's it going to do to our life if there's a massive blackout?

I do what you're asking me to do.

What happens?

You win some journalistic award, I'm finished. The long arm of Lexer will

out and crush me. That's paranoia. No, that's fact.

They'll do everything in their power to discredit me, and you know that. No,

Dan, you speak out. You're going to wake a lot of people up.

Don't underestimate the collective intelligence.

I can't help you. I'm sorry.

You said that Schultz is making decisions that'll put a lot of people in

way. Well, you know what?

You're making decisions, too.

You don't speak out?

Where's the difference?

It's a complex and multifaceted issue. I mean, the whole system...

It needs to be modernized, okay? But they just want to patch it over with

fixed solutions.

And in the meantime, the existing energy sources are on a collision course with

the environment.

Coal, for example, is relatively cheap, but it's dirty.

They say that retrofitting plants is too expensive. Fine, but nuclear power is

dangerous to the environment.

In the meantime...

The American people just keep buying more, using more, demanding more and

power. Well, when are we going to acknowledge that we can't keep going on

way?

Potentially a risk to hackers? Well, we're beyond potentially a risk. The

is imminent.

And there is a technological solution, but no one wants to hear about that. All

that is required is to develop intrusion detection systems.

which are capable of operating in the real -time environment of Helios 9, with

all control commands completely encrypted.

Then you need experts to create the system and to maintain it, and they're

saying that's too expensive.

Excuse me, I need to talk to Chris.

Thanks.

You got a sec?

Yeah, sure.

I'm still the boss around here for the next 53 hours, right?

Yes, technically.

No, no, no, not technically.

Literally, I'm the boss.

I asked you to look at that new intern's data.

Andy, for crying out loud, she's an amateur. You work for me, Chris. You

understand? You work for me. I asked you to do something. You didn't do it.

I just had a chance to look at that kid's stuff. It could be very

Look, I get it, Andy. She's an attractive girl. It's nice to have her

I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that.

And I'm going to say this just one more time.

As long as I'm running this place, we play by my rules.

Do you understand?

Yeah. You understand?

Yes.

Sabrina Rogers.

Yes? I want you to make a presentation on this Arctic Low situation to the

entire staff in ten minutes. What? You got ten minutes.

I want you in the front row, taking notes.

Something's wrong.

These upper air temperatures are what we'd see in December, and they're

dropping. Could it be a glitch in our instruments?

I doubt it.

Let's turn around and take another reading to be sure.

Copy that.

Copy that dash seven out.

Dash seven took three different temperature readings.

Says the temperature in the upper atmosphere is 30 degrees below normal.

Lake Superior is running 13 degrees warmer than normal. Same conditions that

sank the Edmund Fitzgerald. But that was in November.

We're still in August. Which means that this system that you just so thoroughly

briefed us all on could come barreling down the Great Lakes. How far?

All the way, southern Lake Michigan.

So what you're saying is that within the next 48 hours, a hurricane could

actually hit Chicago?

If these systems converge, it won't be just a hurricane. It'll be a superstorm.

Worse than anything we've ever seen.

That's what I want to know.

What's up with Mom and Dad?

What do you mean?

Well, they haven't been talking to each other.

And I've caught Mom crying twice.

Look, I don't think we should get involved.

So there is something going on.

Tell me.

They're just having some issues.

Like serious issues?

They'll probably get divorced.

Our lives will be ruined.

My boyfriend's a criminal.

I'm seriously thinking about running away to California and living on a

Develop intrusion detection systems, which are capable of operating in the

-time environment of Helios 9, with all the control commands completely

encrypted. What the hell is he talking about?

Just be patient.

These companies, they're rushing to the edge of the cliff.

In the name of cost -effectiveness.

How cost -effective is it going to be when the whole system collapses?

Ordinary people need to take responsibility. I mean, power is

You realize that people pay less for power per day than they would by

hamburger and a Coke for lunch.

See, he gives a ton of great stuff like that. We can break it up and run it as a

week -long feature. It's coming off like some kind of wacky manifesto.

He doesn't sound credible.

Are you kidding?

He's the head systems operator for Lexicorp. He's one of the top guys in

field. This is not the Science Channel.

I'm not willing to pit this station against an entire army of Lexicorp

over what?

Some disgruntled employee?

You're afraid.

This has absolutely nothing to do with his credibility. It has to do with you

being scared to take on the big companies.

Amy, come on.

When you're in my job, and you have a parent company breathing down your neck

get them ratings and limit their exposure, We'll see what kind of

choices that you make.

Down London.

It's Amy.

He didn't go for it.

What does that mean?

Bottom line, my boss doesn't have the guts to take on Lexicorp.

But I do, okay?

Hello?

Hello?

Listen to me, okay? We are on the same team here.

What team's that?

Jeff? Hey, where are you?

About 10 ,000 feet over a town called Escanaba in Upper Michigan.

Isn't that a long way from where you're supposed to be?

Amy, I gotta keep this short.

There's a major storm about to hit the north shore of Lake Superior.

If it stays on this track, it could... Could be down there within 24 hours.

Well, I haven't heard anything on the weather alert.

You will.

It's a monster.

When's the last time you checked in with Laura?

This morning.

I just tried her. She must be out.

I'm going to send her to her parents' place. It's far enough off the lake.

All right, well, you want me to drive her out there? No, that's okay.

There's time.

And, Amy, listen to me.

I know you're going to want to report on this storm, but be careful.

It's looking pretty bad, especially near the lake.

Hey, it's me.

Where are the kids?

Garth at camp and Lindsay out.

I just got a heads up from the weather people. Apparently there's a huge storm

heading our way.

Possibly two.

Bigger than the last one? Apparently, yeah. I just think that we should round

the kids and keep them at home at least until I find out a little bit more.

Are you coming home?

I can't right now.

Why not?

Jane, I have a responsibility.

To who?

Look, take it easy. Listen, if it gets bad, I'll bring you guys down here.

There's a shelter under the building and we'll all be safe here.

Will she be there too?

Jane, this isn't the time.

I'm just scared.

I know.

I mean, the state we're in, I don't think we can make it through a major

calamity. By we, do you mean the power grid or you and me?

I'll get the kids.

We'll be here waiting for you to call.

Hello? I'm going to pick up your sister, and I want you to come home right away,

okay? What's up?

Is it about Dad?

No, Dad's fine. I'll explain everything when you get here.

I love you.

I love you too, Mom. Bye.

It's just not feeling right to me.

What's not feeling right? Tell me what I did.

It's just, I'm not... Mom, can't we just be friends?

No, forget it. I don't want to be friends.

Look, if you're telling me that this is over, then get out of my face. Lindsay.

I want you to come home with me now.

Mom. Hey, look.

Lindsay, go.

She, like, totally dissed you, dude.

Mother, you're, like, totally humiliating me. I'm sorry.

I'll explain it in the car.

The bank.

We might need some emergency cash.

Emergency? What's going on?

There's a storm coming.

Hi, please leave a message for us.

Hi, Gareth.

I'm stopping at the bank with Lindsay. We'll be on our way home in just a few

minutes, okay? Bye.

You know, your father told me they invented those timer things at

It's psychological. People don't get so impatient waiting if they think they

know how long it's going to take.

Do you see what I'm seeing?

Tell Mitch we need him right away.

I have no idea.

So you're taking a trip? Oh, I'm going to my parents.

Jeff called and said there was a storm coming down from Canada. What kind of

storm?

You've got to be kidding. Oh, would you look at that?

They're telling us we have to buy our places and the whole building is falling

apart.

Mom, what's going on?

I don't know.

What's going

on?

They're saying that the lines are overloaded. This line was fine two

ago. Now look at it. Give it a second. The backup power will kick in. It's not

responding to commands. Come on.

We've got multiple failures across the city. Call emergency services. Where's

the backup?

It's dead. Nothing.

Brian, go downstairs and fire the generator by hand.

If we can't stay in business, nobody will.

What are we going to do? The door's locked and we can't climb out, so I

wait until someone turns the power back on.

You know what's happening? Yeah, I'm kicking this.

Tornadoes have knocked down transmission lines. There's been a massive power

failure in Chicago.

No phones, no television, no radio.

Perfect timing.

Three million people about to get clobbered. Now we got no way to warn

We'll uplink your report to the satellite of the emergency power.

Most of Chicago may not see you, but the rest of the world will. I'm ready. Now

listen to me. I want you to provide information. Paint a picture, let it see

what's happening through your eyes. No speculations, no theories, and nothing

alarmist. I got it. We're ready when you are. Good.

At this moment, Chicago is a city without power.

Trains, traffic lights, bridges, markets, restaurants, homes, everything

come to a grinding halt. People are wandering around in various states of

confusion and shock.

And on top of this apparent citywide blackout, sources at the National

Administration have told me there's a major storm making its way down from the

Great Lakes.

Lindsay?

Is anybody home?

The lines to my house are down. I can't get through to my family.

Lex is generating power, but our grid won't accept it.

This doesn't conform to any of the outage patterns we've trained for.

I need a bigger picture of what's going on. We won't get it from these

computers. Anybody seen Dan London?

I don't think he's in the building.

Try him at Lexer. This is exactly what he predicted.

These doors are automated.

In an emergency, they're programmed to shut and lock.

We can't get out?

Well, not till someone gets the juice back on, which ought to be any minute

So please, everyone, just remain calm. Is there an override? No, sir. We can't

do anything from inside the bank.

I said I was sorry.

Give me another chance, okay? Forget it, Eric.

We're just not right for each other.

What is it, another guy?

What are you doing?

Get away from me.

Take his gun.

Eric, I'm not doing this!

I'm telling you, there's no way these lives can be overloaded.

Override the computer and do it the old -fashioned way. The new system won't

allow it.

If we can't generate power or get it from our providers, we've got to get it

somehow.

50 calls have come in from power operators in Illinois and three other

reporting a major failure in the Chicago area.

Is it cascading or are they containing it? Well, there hasn't been enough time

to enforce the new requirements. No one really knows how well protected the

grids are. We know they haven't finished safeguarding the interconnects, which

means the whole country is vulnerable.

Outages in northern Illinois and central Midwest were just reported. Thanks,

Barbara.

Mitch Benson is calling from Greater Midwest Electric in Chicago on line one.

I told him you'd return, but he's insisting on talking to you.

Yes, it's Shirley Abbott. We heard about the blackout. Well, it's too early to

know if it's a hacker, but it's a strong possibility.

I've already talked to the FBI and Homeland Security.

They're on it. Tell me what else you need right now.

Well, as you know, we've got bad weather coming, and we've got to get power to

coordinate rescue and shelter operations.

How can I help? Well, it's got to come from outside generating sources, which

probably means twisting a lot of arms in a short period of time.

Well, I know something about twisting arms. Let me line up my ducks, and I'll

get back to you.

What can I do for you?

Hello, it's Shirley.

I need him.

No, it's not just about Chicago anymore.

It's about the whole country.

Since 5 .02 this afternoon, the city of Chicago and surrounding areas have been

without power.

Millions of citizens are stuck in traffic jams, elevators, and buildings

electronic security systems.

With phone lines down, cell phones out of service, and only battery -operated

televisions and radios viable, one of the big questions is, how will citizens,

how will our friends and family be able to receive emergency information?

This is a city in crisis.

Everyone to the back.

Move it!

Cop, unless you want to get shot, move.

Get going.

In the front, get down. All of you, get down. Get down.

Winds at 160 knots.

Waves in excess of 15 meters.

Precipitation extremely heavy.

This thing's off the charts.

Hey.

Has anything this big ever hit Chicago?

Not since they've been keeping records.

The polar jet stream stays at these levels. This could be a Category 5.

Or worse.

These southern systems are still on the same track.

Gotta talk to somebody.

Yo, Andy, talk to me. Where's this thing headed?

Well, the satellite says north -northeast, towards St. Louis.

Well, they say the bird never lies.

It did in Galveston.

Look, Andy, you gotta let that go, man. Quit beating yourself up about that.

64 people, Tommy. Yeah, well, a lot more people would have died if that storm

had hit land.

You made the only call you could.

No, I should have listened to my gut.

Well, if you're asking my gut, this is something we ain't never seen before.

I don't think it's gonna stop anytime soon.

Yeah, my gut says the same.

I hope we're both wrong.

Keep me posted, pal. You got it, buddy.

Okay, folks, in the line.

Joe, I feel you got your money's worth.

I gotta help out a buddy and follow this thing till it blows itself out.

Joe. Catch a bus from here.

Center!

To give you some sense of how this is affecting people on a local level, we're

at the Lake Vista Emergency Center, where emergency personnel have been

dispatched to rescue victims who have been injured or trapped due to the

blackout. With public transportation stopped, local hospitals are short on

workers.

Joining me now is John Tanner, an EMT with the Lake Vista Medical Center.

We've seen a large number of patients come in with blackout -related injuries.

We're asking any qualified medical doctors, nurses, technicians to please

your way into the city.

I would add that all emergency workers are needed in the city. And now we have

reports confirming another threat.

A major storm is making its way south on Lake Michigan.

This storm could quickly grow to catastrophic hurricane strength.

For those of you who can hear this report... Listen closely to emergency

broadcast advisories, and if advised to evacuate, move immediately to low -rise

inland structures or pre -designated public shelters before you're cut off by

floodwater. If you are not ordered to leave your home, take refuge in a small

interior first -floor room away from windows, doors, and flying debris.

Once the hurricane hits land, avoid downed electrical wires to be alert for

tornadoes.

It's an eerie sight.

The Chicago skyline.

And tonight's dark.

Dark and filled with dread as we go into what could well be the longest night

the people of this great city have ever lived through.